Faker | Muke

Chapter Twenty-Two

When Michael told his mom he'd catch the next flight out, that's exactly what he did. He was in childhood home in Sydney not even 24 hours after he hung up the phone with her and it felt good to be back home and out of the public eye. People still recognized him, but not to the extent of when he's in Los Angeles. This is freedom to him. Michael left all his bad baggage back in California and it finally feels like he can breathe without being suffocated by the negative people around him, all the heartache he's caused by a few words to the boy he loves more than anyone else. It was taking a toll on him.

Michael was sat stuffing him face with his moms home made meals. Michael thought there wasn't anything better than having hot meals placed in front of him three times a day. Michael can't remember the last time he's had this much food to eat. He's been living off cereal and coffee since his life started to spiral down him. His life wasn't great anymore, not without Luke in it. It was MichaelandLuke against the world. Now it's Michael and Luke fighting their own battles separately.

"Honey, do you want to talk about it more?" Michael's mom asked, she sat down across from her son at the kitchen table. He had a bowl of hot tomato soup and a grilled cheese placed in front of him. It was one of his favorites and had asked his mom to make it for him when he came crawling out of his cave he's created in an old room that was never used in their home.

"There's nothing to talk about." Michael mumbled with a mouth full of food.

"You wouldn't be back home if nothing was wrong," His mother stated, her tone was stern and it made Michael cringe into himself. Coming back home and having to talk about all the problems he left back in america wasn't what he wanted. Michael wanted to forget everything while he was home, wanted to forget reality for awhile longer. None of his bandmates knew he was here, he gave Troye a quick briefing before he shot out the front door, but that was it. "Tell me what's going on?"

Michael took a deep breath before he started telling his mother what he had said on the phone just the other day, but explaining it greater detail. It was a little easier telling her a second time around. The tears only making an appearance whenever he mentioned Luke or something he had to say to the blond while under contract with their manager. His mother still sat across from him, was clutching her cup of tea with tears welling up in her eyes as she watched her only child talk about what he's gone through while trying to live his dream with the three people he loves dearly. Being known and out there doesn't mean he should have to change his life that was already set in stone beforehand. No one should be allowed to do that to anyone. It's like telling a married couple that they need a divorce because their relationship isn't pleasing to the public eye. It's a bunch of bullshit.

"Calum also said something about us getting out of our contract with the management we're signed to, but that'll take time and a lot of money. The other guys have no need to want to change or get out of it management. It's not like I could sit down and explain it to them either. Jennifer would get all suspicious and shit on why they want out as well."

"You need to tell Luke, have him trust you again. This isn't doing any good to either of you and the rest of the boys need to know you're being manipulated into all of this. This isn't okay for any person to do to another and they need to be aware of it. Michael, this isn't something small. It's a big problem that shouldn't have to deal with alone."

"Calum knows..."

"I know, but that's only one person."

"It's one more than I started with. This isn't something I can change over night," Michael sighed, rubbing at his face as he finished the last of his lunch and placing the dishes into the sink to clean later. "I'll be in my room if you need me."

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Michael was laying on his back in bed, a guitar held firmly in his hands as he strummed an unknown tune. He was itching to write something, the only person on his mind was Luke, but Luke has always been his inspiration while writing and even now in his darkest time Luke is still there in the back of his mind wanting to be the reason the words spilled out onto the paper with ease.

The tune sounded too happy and upbeat for Michael's mood, but who ever said a sad song couldn't sound happy was wrong. A sound of a song doesn't determine the words being sung. If only more people appreciated the words rather than the beat or if they could "jam" to it. If only they sat down to listen and determined the mood the writer must've been in while pouring out their heart then maybe the song would make more sense to some, maybe it wouldn't be a song some would skip on shuffle, maybe if they just knew.

Michael hummed, trying to determine where he was going with it. Usually he was writing with another person, but this time for their certain song just at the tip of his tongue the idea sounded ridiculous to write with someone else, not like he could anyway being thousands of miles away from his bandmates.

"I can still taste you like it was yesterday," Michael mumbled, not quite sure where he was going with it yet. He had his phone sitting next to him on the bed while he had it recording the audio. Michael knew he'd forget if he didn't write anything down or even simply record a shitty rough draft of a song he wasn't even sure was completely there. "Uh, making plans to take over the world," Michael paused, cringing at himself for a moment before he though of something better. "Wait no- making plans to rule the world, you were more than I deserved..."

"I wanna get back to where we started," Michael sung, strumming his guitar while he let words start to flow. Michael was trying to think of setting that he'd never want to forget, a moment shared with Luke and only Luke, where they were adventurous, where they snuck away so it could just be them against the world. "To that–To that to the summer night? Uh, I wanna get back to where we started to the summer night...in San Francisco. Oh my god, that was the night we were running around like crazy lunatics!" Michael shouted triumphantly into his empty room, a light-bulb going off over his head. The night after their last show in San Francisco was one night Michael could never forget.

Michael scrambled up for a notepad and started writing down everything they did, anything that stood out. He was going to write about a happy time spent with Luke from his brokenhearted perspective, and maybe when he finishes it and plays it for him and the boys, it'll be a silent way of telling Luke nothing has changed between them. That some memories can never change no matter how much a person can.

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i see some of you figured out the san francisco thing last chapter, which was exactly what I was hoping for. it would've been embarrassing on my part if i didn't get the point across lmao.

Do you think Michael will tell Luke soon? Or Ashton? 

thoughts on Michael going back home?

thoughts on this story in general?

thanks for reading cuties!